


White men can jump

by plikki



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien/Luka bromance, Basketball, Established Relationship, F/M, Post-Hawk Moth Defeat, post-reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:07:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27080185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plikki/pseuds/plikki
Summary: When the villain is defeated, they get to choose their own battles and some of them turn out to be quite fun - like a game of basketball.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 17
Kudos: 78





	White men can jump

**Author's Note:**

> So my husband decided that he would challenge me with a basketball-themed prompt, but the idea came easily to me. Like Adrien has a basketball hoop in his room, Luka has one on Liberty - bingo!  
> Basketball 101 for those of you who don't know too much about it like me (thanks to said husband): LeBron James is considered to be the best basketball player in the world at present and just won his latest title with LA Lakers last week. Kevin Durant (KD) is another great basketball player, currently with Brooklyn Nets. Just so the names make sense to you.

Life was peaceful, some might even call it boring, but Marinette didn’t mind. After Hawk Moth’s defeat and a few turbulent months before the dust could settle, they could finally be ordinary teenagers. They were still busy with everyday life, but it was up to them to decide how to spice up their free time.

There were obviously other battles to fight and they were ultimately a lot more fun, she thought as her eyes followed Adrien and Luka as they danced around each other on Liberty's deck, the coveted basketball between them. 

She’d always admired the way they got along, but no one had been prepared for how close they’d become after Hawk Moth was unmasked. Luka had been there for Adrien as an older brother, someone to offer guidance and acceptance when he needed it the most. The rivalry for her heart had been forgotten (not that there had been much of it anyway, Luka had always been too level-headed for that) and they’d become inseparable. 

It sometimes caused awkward situations. She felt too self-conscious to be affectionate with Adrien when Luka was there. It didn’t matter how many times he told her it was alright and he was happy for them. She’d forever be grateful for the way he’d been there for Adrien, but she still felt bad for how good he’d been with her, even when she so blatantly rejected his feelings, it was bound to leave a mark on their friendship.

Adrien on the other hand had no such qualms. Maybe it was something between them, maybe they’d talked about her too and had reached an understanding she wasn’t aware of. But there was this calmness between them that she kind of envied. Except when they were playing against each other. Then they allowed their egos to clash, even if only for a little bit. 

Everyone enjoyed watching their one-on-ones. They were pretty equal in their basketball skills so it was always a surprise to see who ended up winning. Maybe they’d bonded over their love for basketball, she decided. It wasn’t just that, she knew, but it was a huge part of their friendship, in addition to music. They could talk about this for hours, discussing stats and their favourite players. They arranged dates to watch games and no one dared touch them during the playoffs. 

Kagami, however, was not there with them. To Marinette's regret, it had taken her longer to accept and approve her relationship with Adrien. But she'd eventually rejoined their friend group and Marinette was happy because she was a great friend. But she still said that basketball was not her sport and skipped the games. Nino, on the other hand, imagined himself as an NBA commentator, Marinette noticed with amusement.

“And now Lebron with his signature move,” he said just as Luka reached for the ball behind Adrien’s back but he feigned to the left and evaded him, so fast that no one could see when it happened. 

Luka moved with a grace that Marinette associated with his alter ego. All calculated movements and surprise attacks, he hit when it was least expected. This often helped him to win. Adrien, on the other hand, was nimble and moved so quickly that if she blinked at the wrong moment, she missed all the action. 

“Lebron is hell-bent on scoring and KD is not having any of it. But oh that twist, did you see that? You’d never expect that agility with his size but here he is, score!” Nino’s enthusiastic commentary made her smile. He liked to joke that for two white dudes, Luka and Adrien sure knew how to jump and he said very often that they could compare to their favourite players in spite of the difference in skin colour. 

Her eyes followed the moving figures and she had to agree with Nino’s assessment. Once upon a time, Luka had had the advantage of height. As the older guy, he shot up earlier and looked down on Adrien for a while. But then Adrien’s growth spurt hit and it didn’t seem like it wanted to end. She could swear that he kept on growing. At 18, he had at least 10 cm over Luka and although she didn’t like to compare him to his father, he could make them 15. She was grateful that she hadn’t kept her modest height from when she was 14, but she’d reached her full potential two years earlier and had fallen behind once again. She didn’t mind, even if her neck sometimes hurt from stretching it too far to reach her boyfriend. 

In addition to growing taller, Adrien had also filled up so it was really fascinating to see him move with so little effort. Then again, he’d had too much experience as Chat Noir and even if this was all behind them now, old skills weren’t easily forgotten. Luka, however, kept his ground. Just as Adrien went for the kill, Luka jumped in front of him, pushing the ball away in the last second.

“You got set back, dude!” Nino shouted at Adrien. “Did you see that block, ladies and gentlemen? A thing of beauty! KD is back in the game!”

They kept at it. If one got ahead, the other scored a three-pointer and caught up. Sometimes it was hard to keep track of everything that was going on, at least for Marinette, but they were enjoying themselves and this was all that mattered. Their rivalry was good-natured and having fun was their main goal. 

“LeBron is on it again, left, right. You’re going to break his ankles, man! He tears off from KD and jumps. What a dunk! Ok, who’s going to pull the ball out of the water this time?” 

They all laughed as the game was officially declared over. 

“Great game,” Adrien told Luka. “You almost got me, _slithering in_ like that.”

“Good one,” Luka replied with a grin. It was good that secrets were no longer an issue. They’d always gotten along as their alter egos and seeing them refer freely to that part of their lives was a great pleasure for Marinette. Also, Luka seemed to have an almost unmatched tolerance for Adrien’s puns, unlike the rest of them.

She met Adrien with a towel and a water bottle. When he leaned in for a kiss, she protested but still let him peck her lips.

“Keep that for after the shower,” she said, nose scrunched up. 

“That was just a warm-up game, m’lady! You never minded when I kissed you after a long battle, in spite of the sweat and grime,” he said, pretending to be offended. 

“Because a kiss was the least you deserved for all the hits you took for me. Now all you did was run with a ball. You have to work harder than that!”

“Who’s ready for pizza?” Alya said, looking up from her phone and smiling at their banter. 

“Everyone, but most of all these two.” Nino said, pointing to the NBA wannabes. They all laughed as Marinette shooed Adrien to the bathroom and settled down to wait for the pizza. Happiness was in the small moments, she reminded herself once again and she wouldn’t have it any other way. 

**Author's Note:**

> I loved writing Adrien and Luka as friends since I believe they can get along more than fine. I hope we get to see them like that!
> 
> Come join us on the [ Miraculous Fanworks Discord](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) to talk all things Miraculous!


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